Conway – The Central Arkansas women's soccer team is set to continue its quest for the top spot in the Southland Conference in the penultimate weekend of the season, hosting the Southeastern Louisiana Lady Lions at 7:00 PM tonight, and the Nicholls State Colonels at 1:00 PM on Sunday.

The Bears (12-3-1, 7-0-1 SLC) picked up a pair of road wins last week to remain the only unbeaten team in Southland Conference play. UCA edged out Houston Baptist 1-0 on Friday before blasting Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 6-2 on Sunday. Sophomore Camille Bassett was named the league's Offensive Player of the Week after netting her second hat trick of the season against the Islanders on Sunday. On the year, the Bears lead the Southland Conference in 11 categories, including goals against average (0.67), save percentage (.853), scoring offense (2.38), total goals (38), and total assists (35), while ranking in the top 15 nationally in scoring offense, total goals, and total points (111).

 Individually, Bassett leads the Southland and ranks seventh nationally in goals per game (0.86), while ranking ninth in the nation in total goals (12) and shots on goal per game (2.57). Fellow sophomore Ashley Smith is fourth in the SLC in points (20), tied for second in goals (8), and tied for 10^th in assists (4), while junior Alex Moore leads the conference in assists (8) and is tied for seventh in points (14) with fellow Bear Dayna Mounie (5 goals, 4 assists). Senior Shelby Wilson is tied for fourth in the league with six assists. In goal, junior Anna Hughes and sophomore Lauren Mercuri continue to be two of the premier keepers in the Southland, combining for nine shutouts. Hughes leads the league in goals against average (0.38) and save percentage (.880), while Mercuri sits fourth in both categories with an 0.97 GAA and a .837 save percentage.

Southeastern Louisiana (6-8-2, 3-4-1 SLC) currently sits tied for fifth in the league table, and split a pair of games at home last weekend. The Lady Lions defeated Sam Houston State 3-0 on Friday before falling to Stephen F. Austin by a tally of 4-0 on Sunday. SLU leads the Southland in shots per game, with an average of 18.81, but sit eighth in goals per game, scoring 1.31 per game. Southeastern La. is allowing 1.46 goals per game and has collected four shutouts. Sophomore Sofia Olsson leads the Lady Lion attack, ranking sixth in the Southland with six goals and ninth with 13 points, while senior Casey Peacock is tied for 10^th in the league with four assists. In goal, senior Hope Sabadash leads the league with 99 total saves and ranks fourth with 6.19 saves per game and four shutouts. The Lady Lions lead the all-time series by a 10-1 edge thanks to a 1-0 win in Hammond, Louisiana last season. The Bears' lone win in the series came in 2007, when UCA scored a 1-0 victory in Conway.

Nicholls (6-6-1, 3-4-1 SLC) is one of two teams tied with SLU for fifth place, along with HBU. The Colonels scored a pair of victories at home last weekend, taking down SFA 1-0 and SHSU 3-0. Offensively, Nicholls sits just behind the Bears in points (6.69/game), goals (2.31/game), and assists (2.08/game), while defensively they sit third in the league in goals against average (1.22) and shutouts (five). Senior Jess Coates leads the Colonel offense, sitting tied for second in the Southland with eight goals, third in the league with 22 points, and tied for fourth with six assists. Freshman Kristy Helmers is sixth in the league in points (17), goals (6), and assists (5). In goal, the Colonels have seen four players start a game, but freshman Roosa Hurmerinta has dominated, earning the nod in nine of the Nicholls' 13 matches. She sits fifth in the league with a GAA of 1.08, seventh with a save percentage of .815, and 10^th with an average of 4.40 saves per game. The Bears hold a 6-3-1 lead in the all-time series, though the Colonels have won the last three meetings between the two programs, including a 4-2 win in Thibodaux last season.